General News
29 January, 2025
Graves located: murdered mother and baby's resting place finally discovered
Final resting place of murdered mother Maria and daughter Louisa discovered
After almost 110 years of uncertainty, the final resting place of murdered mother Maria Langley and her 16-month-old daughter Louisa was finally discovered.
Spatial scientist Dr Andrew Frost located the unmarked gravesite outside of Edenhope on January 24, using a process of elimination, scant records, and radar technology.
Dr Frost's scans indicated ground disturbance, which was the size of the small wooden box that contained the skeletons, as described in the records.
A small white wooden handmade cross now marks the graves of the young mother and her daughter.
Dr Frost's findings indicated only one burial site he scanned differed in size from the standard grave.
It measured about 60 cm long and was near the original entrance to the cemetery.
Emotions overflowed when descendants gathered at the site and were told of the discovery.
Direct descendant Kevin Ryan told The Wimmera Mail-Times on Saturday that he was still on a high note with the findings.
"We hoped the radar equipment would locate the graves but did not dare get our hopes up too high," he said.
"We brought a small wooden cross in the case and erected it at the grave site, so Maria and Louisa would no longer be lost."
Maria Langley was Mr Ryan's great-great aunty.
Maria died by strangulation, and Louisa died of head trauma in 1874.
Their bodies were found near a tree trunk on a property near Edenhope 10 years later.
Still, they were not buried at the cemetery until 1918, over three decades later, due to court proceedings and the difficulty in finding the perpetrator, presumed to be Maria's husband.
The South Australian Advertiser reported on August 20, 1884, that the skeletons with items identifying the two had been found.
"Among the items found was a pair of woman's boots, in which the feet remained, the poor child boots and a leather purse, [which] were much decayed, a banknote and several silver coins, some dated 1872, a thimble, some pieces of crinoline, a corset, a gold wedding rung and a brooch," it read.
These were produced in court. The jewellery disappeared and was never recovered after the court hearing.
Ancestors and historians have continued the search to uncover the details of the lives and deaths of Maria and Louisa and, most importantly, the location of their remains.
Records showed Constable John Hughes and another man, James Ryan, buried the remains in the pauper's section of the cemetery in October 1918, but he did not record the exact position.
The remains had been left in an open box in the police station stables for 34 years because they were evidence in an unsolved murder.
Relatives will hold a memorial service and have a permanent memorial constructed later in the year, which they hope will coincide with the release of the latest publication of the mystery of the Maryvale murders by Nick Manganas, who travelled from Sydney to witness the search and ultimate discovery.